Michigan Rep. Mike Bishop was recently outraised by his Democratic opponent, but he holds a double-digit lead in polling commissioned by the National Republican Congressional Committee. 

Bishop led Democrat Suzanna Shkreli 49 to 31 percent in the Public Opinion Strategies poll of the 8th District, shared first with Roll Call.

Forty percent of likely voters had a favorable view of Bishop, while 19 percent had a unfavorable view of the GOP congressman. Shkreli remained mostly unknown. Thirteen percent had an favorable opinion of her while 4 percent had a unfavorable opinion. 

Public Opinion Strategies surveyed 400 likely voters from Oct. 16-17, with a third of interviews conducted on cell phones. The poll had a margin of error of 4.9 percentage points. 

A poll conducted for the NRCC and Bishop’s campaign in mid-September gave the freshman Republican a slightly wider lead, 53-34 percent. 

[Democrats Haul in More Money than GOP in Michigan Races]

A survey from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s Targeting and Analytics department from early October gave Bishop a six-point edge, 47 to 41 percent. 

The conservative nonprofit advocacy group American Action Network recently announced a $700,000 reservation for TV and digital advertising in the Detroit and Lansing media markets for the final two weeks of the election. House Majority PAC, a Democratic super PAC, still has air time reserved in Lansing that could be used for either the 7th or 8th Districts. 

Shkreli raised $311,000 during the three-month Federal Election Commission reporting period that ended on Sept. 30. Bishop raised $166,000. But the freshman Republican has much more cash on hand. He has nearly $900,000 in the bank compared to Shkreli’s $150,000.

Shkreli got in the race in July after Democratic recruit Melissa Gilbert, of “Little House on the Prairie” fame, had to withdraw for medical reasons. 

The Rothenberg & Gonzales Political Report/Roll Call rates this a Safe Republican race.